Colors In The Rain
by xraex21
Summary: Quinn reaches her breaking point. Rachel/Quinn; Faberry. Spoilers: "Dream On"


Disclaimer: I do not own these characters or the world they play in.

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Quinn felt the rain beating down, covering every inch of her. Her hair dripped fat drops of water that mixed with her tears falling onto her lap, but her clothes were already soaked through. She wished away her sorrows on the rain, hoping that it could cleanse her soul and free her from her prison of shame. She knew God hated her and she tightly gripped her stomach to protect her baby from his scrutiny. That's how she had been raised. To her the world would always be shaded black and white, no matter how much Glee showed her the value of color.

Judgment was how the Fabray's functioned; they judged so that their lives had meaning. If someone was less than them it meant that there was still room for them in Heaven. God had always loomed over the ex-cheerleader's head, far worse than Ms. Sylvester or her father. God knew every move she made and He judged her. Always judging. How could she have not screwed up?

Another tear fell at the thought of her inevitable fall from grace. One moment, one misstep, one second of freedom and it had cost her everything: her popularity, her family, and her faith in herself. Quinn gripped the cold chain of the swing, needing to feel grounded. At sixteen she was already so alone. How could she protect her child from a world that was built for people to fail? No one could live up to God's standards; she could promise her unborn baby nothing.

The tears would not stop, they had not stopped since she found out she was pregnant. She saw it now, all the pain people suffered, some of it at her own hands. Before she thought their suffering meant she could be happy, an even trade. But now as the cold caused her muscles to shake uncontrollably she knew the truth: everyone suffered.

Living at Puck's was so hard. It shouldn't be that difficult to look at him every day, to look at his sister and mother. But it was so hard that it hurt. He tried to take responsibility, and she knew he meant well. But society dictated this was her burden, her price for faltering in her faith and giving in. Another sob broke free and she clenched her eyes closed, wishing that the cold would take her.

As the rain stopped beating down on her, she opened her blurry tear-filled eyes and saw that the playground was still being pelted with rain. Confused, she jumped when a warm hand touched her shoulder.

"Quinn?"

That voice, the guilt it carried was imprinted on her almost as strongly as the guilt she felt for bringing her child into the world. Her heart clenched and she sobbed again, too far gone to care that Rachel Berry was holding an umbrella over her head and watching her break down in the Lima public park. The hand withdrew and for a second Quinn was so afraid, afraid that she was all alone again. That no one cared.

The rain did not return so she opened her eyes and was met with Rachel's concerned gaze.

"I can't do it. I tried," a stronger sob broke through but she continued, "I can't go back there Rachel. It's too hard to look at him every day, to know that he is the reason I'm like this and that his family has to take care of me out of pity. No one wants me."

The brunette seemed startled by the raw emotion coming from the girl who had tortured her daily, but she covered it quickly. Rachel responded with as little emotion as she could, "That isn't true Quinn. Everyone in Glee wants you. We wouldn't have put up with your betrayal to Finn and the club if we didn't."

Quinn's voice was so quiet under the constant beating of rain Rachel almost missed her asking, "Why are you here?"

Readjusting her grip on her umbrella and straightening her posture Rachel responded, "My father spotted you sitting here on our way home from my ballet practice and I had him stop the car. You really shouldn't be out here. Getting hypothermia while pregnant can be very dangerous for the baby. It can cause birth defects and even a miscarriage. You need to get out of the rain Quinn."

The thought of having to go back the Puckerman household made the pregnant girl respond as bitingly as she could, "What do you care Man-Hands? I'm sure your gay dads are waiting."

Rachel's face hardened and she stood even straighter with determination, if that was possible. "That isn't going to work. If you refuse to leave on your own then I'll just get my _gay dads_ to drag you to the car. Your choice Quinn."

An empty chuckle escaped as Quinn responded, "Going to kidnap me Berry? I already told you that I'm not going back there, you can't make me."

Rachel seemed to be calculating something in that odd way of hers and Quinn swallowed hard against the fear that the shorter girl could manipulate her into going back to Puck's. Shoving the umbrella into Quinn's hand Rachel ran back to the street where a car was idling. The blonde looked at the simple black umbrella, so different from the colorful girl that had previously been holding it.

Hearing the car door open, Quinn turned to see two skinny men, one black and one white, flanking Rachel. They looked so odd to the blonde; still she could not help but be a little jealous. They were a family. The men stopped a few paces away, giving Rachel, who was now almost as wet as Quinn, and her some room. Quinn thought she looked kind of like a wet kitten ready to attack; it would have been cute if it had not been so terrify.

Standing quite tall for someone so small, Rachel looked down at Quinn and calmly stated, "If you don't want to go back to Puck's that's fine, but then you have to come home with me. I know you were raised in a very oppressive environment and that you might not be comfortable with my fathers, but we have a spare room. I promise to try not to annoy you."

The pregnant girl felt the weight of the cross around her neck, heavy against her collarbone. She looked to the deserted playground, then at the two men holding hands a few feet away. Hand moving to rest on her baby bump, Quinn looked back up at Rachel and she knew what she wanted.

Her response was quiet but unwavering, "OK."

The dripping brunette smiled widely, taking the umbrella from Quinn and quickly grabbing her now free hand to pull her up off the swing. Mr. and Mr. Berry wore matching smiles as they walked both girls back to the car and the short white man placed a calming hand on Quinn's shoulder. Rachel hopped into the car with childish enthusiasm and checked that Quinn's seatbelt was put on correctly before putting on her own.

The black man with the easy smile shifted the car into gear and said, "Let's go home."

Quinn settled back against the leather seat and for a second she was worried the water on her clothes would ruin it, but then she noticed that no one else seemed to mind. Letting her gaze fall to the window she watched the rain continue to pour outside and she felt a warm hand clasp hers. The grip tightened after a few seconds and Quinn returned the squeeze. Her eyes drifted shut and for a few minutes there was just show tunes coming through the car's speakers and Rachel's hand in hers.


End file.
